ROU TSONG FUNERAL Home & Cremation
Services in Kettering, Ohio, a traditional
funeral home, began offering pet-loss services in 2005, after the owner’s dog, Murphy,
died and funeral services were held for him.
“We quickly realized that what we do for our
families could certainly be extended to their
pets,” says Lisa Routsong, director of pet-loss
services, which include cremation, memorial
services and an online memorial page for
deceased pets.

Saying goodbye to family pets once
meant burying them in the backyard or
letting your veterinarian dispose of them.
But just like everything else that now has
to do with our furry charges—Americans
will spend an estimated $53 billion on their
pets in 2012, according to the American
Pet Products Association (APPA)—even in
death, only the best will do.

“I couldn’t bear the thought of the vet
‘disposing of him,’ ” says Gina Roberts-Grey,
of Baldwinsville, New York, who had the
family dog, Bailey, cremated. Bailey now rests
eternally in a marble urn atop a bookcase in
Roberts-Grey’s office.

Similarly, Julie Dales of Bloomington,
Indiana, keeps her cat Chelsea’s cremains on
a bookshelf at home. “Her role in my life was
that of a family member,” says Dales.

“The trend seems to be that people want to
keep their pet with them in their home. I’ve
also been hearing about people wanting to be
with their pet in the same urn. I guess pets
really are man’s best friend,” says Mary Hickey,
a Costco member and president of Renaissance
Urn Company in San Francisco, which began
offering wooden pet urns six years ago and
now sells several thousand each year. The urns,

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also sold to veterinarians, funeral homes
and pet crematories,
have a shelf inside for the
pet’s collar and tags.

Three out of 10 pet owners in an APPAsurvey said they plan to buy some item fortheir pets’ remains or to memorialize their pet.Whether you’re burying a body or cremains,you have more options than a simple shoe boxas a farewell enclosure. Pet caskets and urnsrange from $30 for smaller pets and simplematerials, such as wood, to thousands of dol-lars for larger petsand materials rival-ing those used for theirhuman owners.

Pet cemeteries

Many owners find pet cemeteries an
option worth considering. Founded in
1971, the International Association of Pet
Cemeteries and Crematories (IAOPCC,
www.iaopcc.com), based in Atlanta, has 175
members nationwide. In the last 10 years,
the nonprofit organization has seen a 10 to